TIRUCHY: Thanjavur police on Saturday arrested three persons who were running a fake Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) factory and seized spirit and liquor bottles smuggled from Puducherry.

As the Prohibition and Enforcement Wing (PEW) police from Thanjavur received information that a gang had been operating a fake IMFL unit at KMS Nagar near Melacauvery in Kumbakonam, a team of police conducted an elaborate search operation in the said spot and secured three persons on suspicion from Madha Kovil area.

During the investigation, they gave some evasive responses and the team searched the house in which they were staying.

Following the search, the PEW team found that there were stocks of spirits and huge quantities of liquor smuggled from Puducherry.

They used to fill liquor smuggled from Puducherry into 180 ml bottles and stick holograms of Tasmac. They used to sell the liquor in the black market at a slashed price.

The police arrested S Ibrahim (46), and T Anbu Selvan (39), both from Kumbakonam, and J Kolanchinathan (40), from Tiruvidaimarudur. The team also seized 120 litres of spirit, 560 bottles of 180 ml filled with liquor brought from Puducherry, labels, stickers, and a car used for smuggling liquor. The police also are searching for three others from Puducherry.